DE – Raga CDs of the Months (09/13): Sikh Sangeet – Gurbani Kirtan (The Major Raags in Sikh Music) – part 1/2

The Hindustani music from North India and South Indian (Carnatic) music is essentially the story of the Hinduism and Moghul emperors. The ancient scripts of Hinduism are the Vedas and can be dated back until around 1200 B.C. (e.g. Rigveda). The Moghuls were represented in Northern India from 1526 to 1858, among them Akbar as the most meaingful. Akbar reigned from 1556-1605.

The Indian classical music has contributed significantly to justify the Sikhism. As the founder of the Sikh doctrine is Guru Nanak Dev (15 April 1469 – September 22, 1539 in Talwandi (now in Pakistan)) as the first of ten (10) gurus. They all lived in the period from 1469 to 1708 and have dominated the Sikhism in various ways. Nanak Dev, the first Guru started as early in the 15th century to teach as an itinerant preacher the basic principles of Sikhism on his travels. With the findings from the various religions, who met him, from Hinduism, Jainism, Islam to Sufism Guru Nanak Dev put an independent doctrine of the unity of God, or rather of the divine..

The teaching of Sikhism is a monotheistic. Guru Dev Nanank did not speak of a God, not as a personification of the divine rather than the unknown, indeterminable, formless … omnipresent, in the spiritual sense.

The verses of the Guru Granth Sahib are written in their own language, in Gurmukhi. It is derived from Punjabi and Hindi and had been widespread in the Middle Ages in North India. The Gurmuki script has its origin in a variety of languages. Today it is the official written language of the Indian federal state Punjab. Gurmuki was standardized by the second Guru Angad Dev. The vocal Gurmukhi language consists of the Gurbani words. The text of the Guru Granth Sahib is therefore referred to as Gurbanigurbani. Gurbani is literally “the spoken word of the Master, the Guru,” which gives the student and pupil’s full attention. The Sanskrit word “guru” is more than just a teacher. For a Sikh it means teacher + spiritual leader at the same time.
Unlike in Hinduism in which one must be born, everyone can commit to Sikhism. Here we come across the idea of reincarnation. The caste system is rejected as in the Indian Constitution. Worldwide, the numbers of Sikhs are estimated to something less than 30 million. The majority live in northern India, in Punjab, the border area between India and Pakistan. After the Great Migration has begun in the 19th century, the larger Sikh diasporas developed in Canada, East Africa, the Middle East, England, Australia and New Zealand.

When you enter a Sikh temple, the Guru Granth Sahib Tront in the center. Since 1708 it is the official book of Sikhism, in unchanged form. After entering the temple, a Sikh bows symbolically n front of the holy book to honor the teachers (gurus). The Sikh religious services and celebrations are open to everyone, regardless of its origin or religion.